Autumn begins today. With its arrival the annual Jellico fall festival will have a celebration highlighting the old fashioned heritage of the area.

Craft vendors will line the sidewalks and live entertainment will grace the stage on Oct. 1 and 2 at the Veterans Park in downtown Jellico. Merchants will open at 10 a.m. both days and the stage will have an open mic from noon. to 5 p.m.

Performances are scheduled on the dance floor and with demonstrations, including China Hackler who shows children how to milk a cow, make butter and grind corn to make hominy.

Where in the world is Cody McCullah? That is a question the LaFollette native’s family and friends will likely be asking a lot over the next 11 months.

McCullah said he was cruising along in his life as a graduate student and finance company analyst when he attended a conference with his church that made him begin to question the direction of his life.

Home grants for families in Jellico, LaFollette, Caryville and Campbell County amount to $750,000 for home rehabilitation.

These municipalities have been awarded the 2010 Home Grant from the Tennessee Housing Development Agency (THDA), a federal funding community program.

In the midst of accepting funds, these municipalities will soon begin the application process eligible for low-income families. Graded on a point structure for age, income and number of people in household, the grant administrator will determine which families have the most need.

It was a year ago when Tatum Croft was diagnosed with leukemia. She was only three-years-old when she started to receive treatment twice a week, a process that is draining for an adult and twice as much for a child.

During those initial treatments she signed up for the Dream Connection, a non-profit organization granting wishes to children in East Tennessee.

The group behind the Dream Connection believes a dream come true to a child can give back, in some small way, that which disease and illness have taken away.